She doesn’t know who she is. She doesn’t know where she is, or why. All she knows when she comes to in a ransacked cabin is that there are two men arguing over whether or not to kill her.

And that she must run.

In her riveting style, April Henry crafts a nail-biting thriller involving murder, identity theft, and biological warfare. Follow Cady and Ty (her accidental savior turned companion), as they race against the clock to stay alive.

The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die was a twisted, mind-blowing mystery that kept me guessing until the very end.

In true April Henry fashion, the book starts right in the thick of things. There’s no 50-100-page set-up, where we have to wait and wonder what will happen. The book opens with the main character, Cady, waking up in the cabin. I actually really love this about April Henry. Sometimes, those first 50-100 pages can be really slow and boring while we’re waiting for something to happen. And knowing something WILL happen, I find sometimes I tend to overlook that 50-page set-up because I’m waiting for the action to start. I can’t speak for other readers, but that’s just me. So not having to deal with that is pretty refreshing.

Cady (who’s name we don’t learn until half-way through the book), was really intriguing. With amnesia, she doesn’t remember who she is, where she is, who is after her or why. This puts not only the character in the dark, but also the reader. Just as Cady didn’t know who to trust, neither did we. Every time she made the decision to do something or trust someone, my heart was in my throat because I always wondered, can she really trust this person?

We, as the reader, are also given two possible theories for what happened, how Cady came to be in that cabin, who was trying to kill her and why. It isn’t until almost the end of the book that we learn which theory is true and, until then, the back-and-forth on what was happening almost made me dizzy with confusion, doubt and worry. It added to the question of who could be trusted and made me second-guess everything Cady decided to do.

I liked Ty a lot, but I never fully trusted him, thanks to the two different theories and wondering which to believe. But he seemed kind and caring through it all. I don’t know how believable it was that he would help a total stranger in the way he did, but we were given an explanation as to why he did what he did and I guess I can understand where he was coming from.

I loved the timeline and the big reveal at the end. It wasn’t at all what I thought it would be. Plus, just as April Henry begins her books right in the thick of things, she also ends them abruptly – not in a bad way, but I got to a point where I had 13 pages left and had no idea how she would fit everything into that last 13 pages and still wrap the plot up nicely, but she did! I don’t read many thrillers, and it was kind of fun being on the edge of my seat the whole time, trying to guess what would happen and how it would end.

Overall, just as I was glad Girl, Stolen was my first April Henry book, I’m so glad I chose The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die as my second April Henry book. I thoroughly enjoyed it and loved seeing the similarities and differences from the first book to the second. I’m also really excited to pick up my third April Henry book because I’ve come to expect the kind of thrills, twists and turns in her books that will leave me feeling satisfied with the ending. I definitely recommend this book!

I’ve only read a couple of April Henry’s books (including this one) but I completely agree with you. I love how she just jumps right into things and how she ties things up perfectly even in a short amount of time.

It’s amazing how she manages to do it, isn’t it? It’s like.. How could she POSSIBLY wrap this up that fast? But she does! And I never feel let down or like I want more. I’m always satisfied with the ending! :)

Hi Austin. You’re absolutely entitled to your opinion. I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy the book. However, your comment spoils almost the entire book, which isn’t fair to those who haven’t read it and want to. I try not to censor the comments on my blog, but to avoid spoilers, I’m going to have to delete it. You’re welcome to submit a new comment that is spoil-free. Thanks!

I loved this book,but I’m really dissapointed that there wasnt a sequel to this book. I want to know what happens next. Do Ty and Cady get married?? Do they have kids? What about Cady’s little brother and parents? THIS CANT BE THE END OF THE GIRL WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO DIE!!!!!!